


Of Dreams

by accioserotonin



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Smut, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:20:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25502002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/accioserotonin/pseuds/accioserotonin
Summary: In the shadow of a looming war, under the oppressive thumb of Hogwarts new "High Inquisitor," Sarah Lewis is just another witch with a seemingly unrequited crush, which would have been fine had Fred Weasley not taken to eavesdropping on others for fun.
Relationships: George Weasley/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 27





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, All! I'm a twenties-something fanfic writer that has survived in the gutter since the days of Quizilla. Lately, my first fandom love, Harry Potter, has come calling and so here we are. 
> 
> This is a multi-chaptered George/OFC fic, mature rating to be earned.

Fred Weasley had taken to listening in on conversations that were none of his business; a summer spent locked away in a rotting old house had little to offer in way of entertainment otherwise, and while endless bouts of cleaning had turned up a few lucrative treasures, it was hardly a stimulating task. Popping in and out of rooms at random had initially offered him a few laughs, but even then, the joy wrought from the startled exclamations of the houses other residents had warn of rather quickly. While he had initially been optimistic that he and his twin brother, George, would be able to use their time to further their burgeoning joke business, his mother’s near constant presence had put an end to much of that; and so he had taken on a quieter hobby, one more likely to fall under his mother’s radar, eavesdropping. 

He liked to think that he had mastered the task, both without aid, and via the use of a nifty little invention of his and his brothers- extendable ears. Throughout the latter part of the summer he had gathered endless bits of information, snippets of conversation that offered a reprieve from boredom; whispers of war, Hogwarts gossip (no doubt outdated by the time of their return), tail ends of nagging lectures, and future plans. None of the information had been particularly lucrative, but he was happy to have come away from a few of his lurking sessions with the spark of a new product idea or prank (he also now knew the way his old professor, Remus Lupin, took his tea- down to the last sugar cube, but he reckoned he could of figured that out by just observing him long enough). 

All said, it was one of the lesser of the evils the house had to offer in ways of passing the time, and the time did indeed pass. Finally, free of the wretched abode, he had plans to retire his new found hobby, but as he moved down the corridor of the Hogwarts Express, a particularly lascivious laugh drawing his attention, he couldn’t help but to pause and lean in. 

“Don’t act like if Weasley tried to whisk you into a cupboard for a quick shag you wouldn’t say yes!” 

Jackpot.  
\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -  
Sarah Lewis, coming off the tail end of a rather uneventful, though deliciously lazy, summer holiday, could not have been more thrilled to see the faces of her best friends. For their part, Isabella Flores and Reid Keane looked equally as excited, both quickly jumping up to wrap the girl in a tight hug, eager for a catch up after spending the better part of two months apart. While the conversation had begun innocently enough it soon took, as it so often did, a sharp left turn into scandalous territory, eventually leading a rather flustered Isabella to loudly turn on Sarah; “Don’t act like if Weasley tried to whisk you into a cupboard for a quick shag you wouldn’t say yes!”

Sarah, with an adamant shake of her head, let her friends statement linger in the air for a moment before, with as serious an expression as she could muster, solemnly affirming the claim; “Well of course I would.” Isabella, who had always been weak to such sharp contrasts in humor, doubled over in laughter, nearly falling to the floor when the other girl gave her shoulder a sharp shove; “C’mon it was hardly that funny,” though the humor in her tone betrayed her actions, “besides, I was obviously joking, I’m not Reid.”  
For his part, the boy in question only squinted his eyes in playful challenge, waiting for her to continue; “I’m just saying, how many Beauxbatons boys did you work your way through last term?” 

“Hardly any, thank you.”

“Right, don’t be silly, Sarah, the Durmstrang ones suited him much more.” 

With an impish smile and a shrug of his shoulders the handsome boy confirmed as much, and at that it was Sarah’s turn to crack up, slumping against Isabella’s shoulder, shaking with laughter. The conversation was hardly funny enough to illicit such a reaction, she had just missed her friends so much that the elation of being reunited rendered her near delirious with joy.  
Much as Sarah had done to Isabella when she had lost it, the other girl seemed to make it her mission to bring her friend back down to earth, “You still don’t get to act all innocent! Might I remind you I’ve read your dream journal- the real one, not the one you fudge for Trelawney. What was it last time? ‘Even after I awoke, I could feel the weight of his hand on my thigh, the sweet press of his lips against the column of my throat,’ poetic, that. But the best one still has to be-” 

That was enough to halt the young Ravenclaws laughter, causing her to speak quickly over her friend, cutting through her words, “Before you escalate this any further, Iz, might I remind you, all present witnessed your Oliver Wood obsession,” she pitched her tone up in a poor imitation of her friend, “I sure would like to polish his broomstick.”  
“Bitch!” Though Isabella had snapped back, there was no true malice to be found in her tone, “I would never say something like that, might find it written in your journal though… Shall we check?” 

“You can check my a-“

Sarah quickly cut her sentence short, the rude word dying on her lips as the door to their compartment was abruptly shoved open, revealing a stocky boy with a shock of red hair; a Weasley twin to be certain and, judging by the ear-to-ear grin he was currently sporting, one that had just heard a particularly compelling piece of gossip. 

Shit.


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was very excited (and extremely nervous) to write some Weasley dialogue; it is my hope that no one seems out-of-character, but also that I am able to highlight intrinsic differences between the twins in particular.

Fred’s eyes ran eagerly over each face in the compartment; he recognized them all, but the lone boy he was most familiar with, having shared many-a-lesson together over the years, and so it was him he acknowledged first. “Keane, ‘afternoon. Ladies.” Fred didn’t miss the subtle shift of the other boys’ eyes as he glanced towards his companions, cautious, calculating; he could practically hear the gears turning in all their minds trying to puzzle out why he was there and, more importantly, what he had heard. “Weasley, alright?” 

In that moment Fred had a decision to make; openly reveal everything he’d heard, or leave the lot of them in suspense. Neither option was particularly kind, not that he was overly concerned with that, so he weighed which would be more fun instead. The grin on his face was practically predatory as he made his decision; “Well enough! Didn’t mean to intrude, ‘fraid I got wrapped up in a day dream and lost my way.” 

“Happens to the best of us!” It was Lewis that responded, tone bright and even, and if she caught onto the way he emphasized his words, she certainly wasn’t showing it; “Reliving your summer?” 

“Wouldn’t want to even if I could, bit too stuffy for my liking. I had mind to visit some new mates from Durmstrang or Beauxbaton but I barely heard from them; I suppose we didn’t suit each other very well in the end.” This was a downright lie as Fred hadn’t really made any friends from either school, that was unless his older brother Bill’s new girlfriend, Fleur, counted, but even she he had only seen a couple times in passing. Still, his lie had the intended effect, for while Keane’s poker face never slipped, and Flores seemed genuinely oblivious to his attempts, Lewis’ eyes lit up with recognition before narrowing in what he could only assume was contemplation. That was enough of an indication for Fred that he had accomplished what he’d set out to do; he didn’t want to expose his hand out-right, no more than he already had, but he did want them to wonder, and to squirm…just a bit. 

Shifting his weight from foot-to-foot the ginger considered settling in, niggling the group just a bit longer, but he and George had plans to make a few initial sales on the train, and while the promise of a laugh was present, the potential to weigh down his pockets with sickles was even more tempting. Pretending to sweep a hat from atop his head, he excused himself with an exaggerated bow, promising to see them all around. 

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Reid was the first to speak upon Fred’s abrupt departure; “So, we all agree, right? He definitely heard?” 

“I- I don’t think so. He has the subtlety of a ticking time bomb, there’d be no question if he knew.” 

Barely containing a scoff, the boy rebuffed Isabella’s words; “you call that subtle?” 

“Well I don’t know! I just feel like if he knew he wouldn’t have wasted anytime going in on us. The Weasley twins are notorious for wanting to have a laugh, and if he did hear he was just handed a gold mine, I don’t think he’d hold back.” 

“Information is power, he could want to bide his time deciding what to do with it.” 

“Merlin, Reid, not everyone is out for blackmail. And what use would any of that information be? Woods’ long gone, so that’s bust, and everyone already knows you’re a massive slag.” 

“Hardly, I know how to be discreet, thank you. Besides, I would suspect he’d be far less interested in our dirt than in Sarah’s.” 

The girl in question, who had remained uncharacteristically quiet throughout the exchange, offered a small shrug of her shoulders in response. While her stomach roiled at the thought of Fred Weasley becoming aware of her crush on his brother, or worse yet, of her dream journal in which she had written illicit imaginings of the boy in question, she did her best to dismiss it outwardly; “he didn't really give us much to go off, and at any rate what’s done is done.” 

“-And it’s not like we said which Weasley, even if he did hear I think you’re safe.” 

Sarah wasn’t so sure, but she nodded along with her friend’s reassurances regardless; “that’s true, I’m sure what he said was just a coincidence, we felt like we’d been caught so we read too far into it. I’m sure he didn’t hear a thing.” 

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

“D’you know Sarah Lewis?” When his mirror image didn’t respond quickly enough, he pushed on, “Ravenclaw? Year below us? Runs around with Flores from Hufflepuff and Keane, he’s in our year.” 

Fred hadn’t intended to wait as long as he had to question his brother, but the rest of the train journey had flown by in a whirl of demonstrations and sales, and when faced with the welcoming feast and the new toad of a DA professor the exchange had almost entirely slipped his mind. 

George considered his twin for a moment before shrugging rather noncommittally; “Eh, I think so.” 

“Apparently the poor Dear has her eye on one of us, eager to have something else on as well, “ 

“Pity her then.” 

“There truly is no accounting for taste, but I’m serious. I overheard- “ 

At this George raised a skeptical eyebrow, well aware of how his brother had spent the holiday. Pushing on, Fred continued his recollection, “I overheard her friends taking the piss, sounded like she’d be quite keen to spend some alone time with one of us, only they didn’t use a first name.” 

George huffed out a laugh, “In that case, how do you know it’s you or I? There’s plenty of Weasley’s to choose from. Could be Percy.” At the mention of their older brother, whose relationship with the rest of the family had recently become quite strained, Fred’s face collapsed into a comedically horrific scowl; “Let’s not be fanciful; who would take snogging him over me?” 

“Who’re you snogging?” The boy’s sister, Ginny, abruptly pushed her way into the conversation, bringing with her their youngest brother, Ron, and his best mates, Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, all looking on with varying degrees of interest. 

As Fred began to say her name, George quickly cut his words; “Leave the lass her dignity, what if it IS Percy she fancies?” 

“Then it’s our moral duty to warn her of what a massive git he is- “ 

“-and at any rate we still don’t know which Weasley they were talking about.” 

“Well we can at least knock one off the list,” Ron, who had been chuckling along sputtered out an offended “Hey!” as Fred gestured towards him, “It could be me!” 

“Do you recon? Think she’s got a thing for prefects?” The level of derision in the older boy’s tone was enough to head off a response, “If that’s the case than Percy can have her.” Hermione, who had remained relatively quiet throughout the exchange, started in reproachfully; “whoever she is, she’s not a trading card, you can’t just pass her around!” 

Fred snorted, “Oh go on then, Hermione, it’s just a joke,” before abruptly standing to wave over the twin’s closest friend, Lee Jordan. George glanced at the girl, who still looked thoroughly unconvinced and rather put out, knocking into her arm softly with an elbow; “he’s just having a laugh, we’re perfect gentleman, honest.”

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Whilst unpacking Sarah took extra care in concealing her dream journal, hiding it away as if Weasley himself would come calling for it. She wasn't sure what to make of the incident on the train, or Hogwarts newest professor, or the mix of anxiety and anticipation bubbling in her stomach. 

She was excited for classes, a new year with her friends, and the possibility of seeing a certain red head at breakfast the next morning (even more so at the possibility of seeing him in her dreams that night), and so, exhausted, she fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross posted on tumblr @acciobraincell, come hang out with me there if you'd like.   
> Feedback always appreciated!


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the process of writing this I have completely plastered my OOTP book with sticky notes, and have a notebook where I have character sheets on everyone, including things like their class schedule and favorite colors. This is the most planning and research I have personally ever done for a fanfic, and I certainly hope it helps me to make the story as authentic and immersive as possible. That said, certain lines of dialogue or action sequences may be pulled directly from the story or very closely resemble the original, obviously those don't belong to me, but I hope to utilize them in effective and creative ways.

Morning dawned entirely too soon, sweeping away the night and with it the fantasy Sarah had found herself wrapped in. If she lay very still she was just able to cling to the wisps of phantom hands on her hips and the press of lips against her own, lips that had been progressively traveling further down her body. Before she could seriously consider slipping back into sleep to chase that bliss the decision was made for her as the eldest of her dorm mates, Aubrey Hepplecorn, tore back the curtains of her bed with one hand pressed tight to her eyes. “Apologies if you’re in your skivvies but May is looking for you, and” at this her voice dropped low into a conspiratal whisper, “if you any hope of bathing I’d go now, Edgecomb and Bellock are about to wake up and you know they’ll hog them for the rest of the morning.” 

Despite the lingering thrum of pleasure between her thighs begging her to stay in place, Aubrey had a point. Marietta Edgecomb and Ruth Bellock were notorious for taking lengthy showers and, if the previous five years of having to share two shower stalls between six girls had taught her anything, it was that bathing was a competitive business; if she didn’t seize the opportunity now she’d lose it all together. 

“Thanks, A. If you see May again tell her I’ll be out in a bit, yeah?” At a hum of confirmation from Aubrey, Sarah hustled towards the bathroom, picking up speed as she passed the slowly stirring forms of the aforementioned girls. 

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

By breakfast, the previous night's conversation had nearly slipped George’s mind until his gaze landed on a huddled group of Ravenclaws comparing schedules. He wondered vaguely if the girl, Sarah Lewis was it?, had already made her way into the Great Hall. Despite having nearly forgotten about her, he was suddenly overcome with curiosity, trying in vain to puzzle out which one she could be. 

His eyes continued to scan over the crowd of Ravenclaws as he and Fred made their way to join Ron, Harry, and Hermione at the Gryffindor table, dropping seamlessly into their conversation. It wasn’t until after the twins had offered to sell their younger brother potentially dangerous sweets, riled the group up about the tough academic year ahead (cheerfully recounting the breakdowns of their own classmates during that time), and nearly exposed Harry’s hefty contribution to their growing business that there was a break in the conversation in which George could prod Fred for information. 

It took the redhead a few moments of searching before his eyes finally lit up, gesturing towards three girls standing near the entrance to the Hall, “The plump leggy one, that’s her.” 

George considered her carefully, her uniform skirt seemed a touch too short to be standard, but that could be due to the sheer height of her, shapely legs seeming to stretch on for ages, or the ample swell of her stomach pulling the material taut across her waist. The girls eventually made their way to empty seats, causing his view of her to become obscured, but even then he didn’t stop looking. It wasn’t until Fred nudged him, “C’mon, George, if we get to Herbology early we might be able to sell a few Extendable Ears,” that he tore his gaze away, now significantly more interested in which Weasley she and her friends had been alluding to when his brother stumbled across them. 

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Charms was Sarah’s first and only class of the morning, and so she and Isabella, whose schedule was identical up until lunch, spent an idle few hours playing Exploding Snap and laughing over posed hypotheticals. Isabella had just finished making a case for why jumping into the black lake on a full moon would be more efficient for avoiding a werewolf than climbing a tree, when Reid appeared over her shoulder. Gesturing for Sarah to remain quiet, he leaned down and whispered “Boo” in the other girl's ear, causing her to shriek and fall from her chair. 

After being pulled to her feet she rounded on him; “You’re such a bellend! When do you graduate again?”

His response, “You’ll miss me when I’m gone,” was nearly lost under Sarah’s exclamation of “It’s been almost six years! How does that keep working?” 

Isabella managed to slug both of their arms simultaneously, shaking her head all the while, “I might miss you but I’ll never miss that, and you, don’t act like he doesn’t get you with the same shit.” 

“Yes, but it’s funny when it happens to you.” 

“...bitch.” 

Before a rebuttal could be made Reid cuffed an arm around both girls; “There’s plenty of time for me to scare you both later, right now I’m starving. Lunch?” 

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

After putting away two bowls of vegetable stew and three rolls Sarah was content to prop her head up on one hand and zone in and out of her friend’s conversation, nearly having dozed off when someone slid into the seat beside her and slapped both their hands heartily onto the tabletop. The noise caused her to jolt upright, a rather rude expression slipping from between her parted lips, heart racing as she whipped her head around; “Well hello to you too, Love.” 

She was met by the grinning face of Fred Weasley, and while he widened his eyes in what must have been his attempt at conveying harmless innocence, the ever-present mischief behind them betrayed him right away; “Bit jumpy are we?” 

“Bit sneaky are we?” 

He feigned offense at her words, placing one hand over his heart, “Why I never! And here I thought the Hufflepuff table would be a welcoming place; they ought to be more careful who they let in.” At this his eyes deliberately slid down to her blue and bronze tie. 

Though the jest was playful, Isabella still felt the need to come to the defense of her friend who had gone a bit red about the face; “She’s welcome any time, the both of you on the other hand...Well, why are you here exactly?” 

George, who had settled across from his brother, was the one to answer; “Didn’t you hear the Sorting Hat’s song last night? House unity and the like, we’re just trying to do our part.” 

“Exactly!” Fred interjected, “You all have been at it for years, figured it was time we gave it a go.” 

While it was true that Isabella, Sarah, and Reid, despite belonging to different houses, ate most of their meals together, it was still a fairly uncommon practice; aside from them it mostly only occurred between inter-house couples, and even then not always. And while it wouldn’t be out of the realm of normalcy for the Weasley Twins to try and shake up the status quo, something still wasn’t adding up. 

“...we may also have some unfinished business with Mr. Keane, here.” 

Reid, who had been steadily working his way through a heaping serving of steak and kidney pie, paying little mind to the interaction, finally dropped his utensil in interest; “Did you bring them?” 

“That’s the thing,” 

“We’ve actually run out of stock.” 

The excited expression on Reid’s face immediately fell; “Damn. If only Sprout hadn’t interrupted us this morning.” Spotting the confusion on both girls' faces, Reid elaborated, “I was going to buy us extendable ears.” 

He said it as if both girls would immediately know what he was referencing, instead his answer only contributed to them becoming all the more lost; “Extendable what?”

“Ears!” George and Fred parroted cheerfully; “They allow you to pick up on sound and hear as if you were merely a foot away, invented them ourselves.”

“Pop one end under a door, the other in your ear, and wonder no more what happens when you aren’t in the room.” 

Sarah was a mix of aghast and impressed; “So they allow you to eavesdrop on people? Why on earth would you want to do that?” At this Fred shot her a rather knowing look, “Why not? You never know what interesting things you might hear.” The wink that followed his words felt more fiendish than friendly. 

“Anyway, we’ve come to offer our apologies, Keane, and to let you know we should be restocked within the week if you’re still interested.” Reid was quick to confirm he would be, causing Fred to rise from his seat and clap his hands together jovially. “Excellent! And for your troubles, some sweets free of charge.” As quick as he was able to drop the wrapped nougat into the other boys waiting hand he was sweeping off down the aisle; George lingered just a bit longer, gesturing Sarah closer and leaning across the table to whisper to her, “I strongly suggest you don’t let him eat those.”

Suppressing a shudder, she nodded, hyper aware of the proximity of his lips to the delicate skin of her ear, and the smell of him that had suddenly invaded her senses; sugar, soil, smoke, and something she couldn’t quite place but so desperately wanted to. All too soon he had pulled back, standing to follow after his brother, departing with a “See you lot later.” 

She could certainly hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross posted on tumblr @acciobraincell  
> Feedback appreciated! xx


	4. Chapter Four

The rest of the week passed in a rain sodden blur with Sarah spending much of her free time alternating between a particularly cushy armchair by her favorite window in the Ravenclaw tower, and a long abandoned classroom that she, Isabella, and Reid had converted into a hideaway of sorts back when the girls were in their fourth year, Reid in his fifth. While they had originally had their sights set on an equally forgotten, but much larger, room on the sixth floor they found that the corridor in which it resided was a bit too trafficked, making sneaking in and out a challenge. In the end, they’d found a more suitable space in the dungeons, one that could only be accessed through a wooden door located behind a tapestry of an unusually elegant looking Troll on the third floor. Beyond the door was a steep, narrow stone staircase that led directly down into the dungeon, ending in a short hallway with a single room at the end of it. Judging by the books and old supplies they had found, it was likely a potions classroom at one time, but whether it be because of the impractical point of entry, or the relatively small size of the space, it had been left to rot. They had cleared it of all dust and decay, managing to smuggle in a number of quilts and other such comforts over the years, and though it was terribly cold in the winters, and always smelled faintly of damp earth, it was theirs. There was even a tiny window that offered a glimpse into the black lake, and though Reid was used to seeing the same thing on a much grander scale, the girls found it impossibly interesting. 

It was here that Sarah found herself late on Friday afternoon, tracking the movement of something small and dark through the waters as Isabella vented her frustration about the newest Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, Dolores Umbridge. Sarah, who had not earned the necessary O.W.L needed to continue the course, had not experienced much of the woman first hand, but judging by the voices of her schoolmates she was destined to catch the ire of a majority of the student body. Isabella, who had only had her second DADA lesson the previous day, mirrored such sentiments; “We weren’t allowed to use our wands, _again_. I thought maybe that was just a fluke for the first lesson, but she really seems hellbent against any practical practice. If it continues like this, all we’ll be doing is reading from our books for the rest of the year, it’s bunk. Not to mention the shit she pulled with Potter."  
Sarah nodded along in understanding, encouraging her friend to get it all out, once it became clear that the other girl had nothing left to say, Sarah spoke up; “That’s awful, Iz, I’m sorry. I can’t believe that Dumbledore would hire someone like her. I mean, Snape is a terror, but at least he teaches...kind of. The timing-”  
She wanted to say how the timing couldn’t be worse. How with the events of the previous school year, and the ever growing unease that something dark was blooming on the horizon, that they now more than ever needed to know how to protect themselves, needed a competent DADA professor to guide them. However, to say it aloud was to acknowledge the dementor in the room so to speak, and the mere thought of doing so had her stomach churning with anxiety. No, she was not prepared for that conversation, not prepared to face the reality she had been so carefully filtering out since last June. So instead she let her sentence trail off lamely before re-stating her original sentiment; “That really does sound terrible, Iz, hopefully things will get better.” But even to her own ears the words sounded weak, like she didn’t quite believe them herself.

Outside the window the mysterious creature disappeared from sight. 

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

By the time the girls emerged from the dungeon dinner was half over, and both were fighting back tired yawns; Isabella, who had plans to meet up with one of her doormmates, headed off towards the Library while Sarah debated just eating a few of the Chocolate Frogs she had stashed away in her trunk and tucking in early. Ultimately the thought of warm bread with butter won out, and so she dragged herself to the ground floor, nearly running into Reid as he hurried from the Great Hall; “There you are! You missed out, Weasley was in his quidditch gear earlier.” Sarah threw her head back with a playful groan; “Damn!” Chuckling, the older boy wiggled his eyebrows at her, “He was looking especially broad as well.”   
Sarah bumped her shoulder against his, “Okay, I get it, no need to rub it in. Iz and I were in the fort.”   
“I thought that might be the case, that’s where I was headed. You coming back after dinner?” Shaking her head, Sarah explained her plans to get into bed as soon as possible, waving off Reid’s offer to sit with her while she ate. Over his shoulder she had caught sight of May and Aubrey still seated at the Ravenclaw table, two of the boys from their year, Andrew Davenport and Eddie Carmichael with them, and knew they wouldn’t object to her company. “I’ll be alright; lunch tomorrow though, yeah?” 

May, Aubrey, Andrew, and Eddie were in the midst of a hearty debate over whether Hogwarts’ resident poltergeist, Peeves, should be ejected from the premises; Aubrey and Eddie seemed all for it while May and Andrew defended his presence. May suggested it was cruel to send him away from what was essentially his home, while Andrew insisted most of his actions were harmless fun, no more dangerous than the kind of stunts the Weasley twins pulled. At this Eddie let loose a loud scoff; “Harmless?! He’s spent the better part of the week trying to drop a bust of Paracelsus on people’s heads! Harmless my left toe. Besides, I’m not so sure the Weasley’s are a gold standard for that either; I heard they’ve been giving first years nougats that bleed you dry.”   
“Completely dry? As in no blood left?” At Aubrey’s question Eddie nodded his head vehemently; “Nothing! Leaves ‘em as nothing but husks.” Try as she might, Sarah couldn’t help the giggle that escaped her at the absurdity of his statement, only fueled by the exasperated expression on May’s face; “We may have a pretty lenient Headmaster, but I think even he would draw the line at murder. You need to vette your sources, Carmichael.” The boy in question simply crossed his arm with a grumble, refusing to carry on the conversation, but mumbling under his breath that they’d be wise to heed his words as warning.

Despite the absurdity of Eddie’s statement, Sarah couldn’t help but think there must be some small bit of truth to them, suddenly quite thankful that George had warned her against letting Reid eat the candy his twin brother had gifted him. She hadn’t spoken to either boy since that day, but increasingly felt as if eyes were on her during meals; more than once she could’ve sworn that when she glanced over to check, they’d just barely averted their gaze. She wasn’t sure if the feeling was driven by the wishful thought that this would be the year George took a shine to her, making at least a few of her dreams come true, or dread that Fred was planning to use the information that she was increasingly sure he had overheard against her in some cruel prank. As with all things she supposed that only time could truly tell. 

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Though the twins would have found an excuse to turn the first Friday night back at Hogwarts into a party regardless, it was nice that the reason ultimately ended up being their youngest brother successfully making the Gryffindor quidditch team. They’d congratulated him with forceful hair ruffles before sneaking off to the kitchens to bring back copious amounts of Butterbeer and other treats, effectively turning the common room into a booming celebratory space. Even Granger had gotten in on the fun before ultimately beginning to nod off in a chair by the fire, at which point they jumped at the opportunity to run a fresh wave of tests on the youngest members of their house without interruption. It wasn’t until a number of them had complained of feeling light headed that they’d called it a night, instead opting to tuck into a bottle of Fire Whiskey that Lee had managed to sneak into the castle. 

The three boys had settled onto his bed, passing the bottle back and forth, and while the conversation had initially centered around a mysterious set of stairs that Lee had unearthed, it quickly turned towards which of the secret passages around the school would be the best to entertain someone romantically in.   
“The one behind old Smarmy probably has the most room, but the chances of Filch busting in are high.” Lee nodded along with Fred’s words, adding; “I’d sooner drink his bathwater than risk him catching me with my pants around my ankles. What about behind the one eyed witch?”   
At this George shook his head; “Being attached to Honeydukes it smells the best, so that works in its favor, but otherwise it’s cramped. I don’t even know if I could fit down there anymore, let alone with someone else.” At this Fred raised and dropped his eyebrows with great exaggeration, nudging both boys in the sides with his elbows, nearly causing Lee to drop the bottle as he squirmed away with a laugh; “Great excuse to cozy up close though.” 

George pushed back; “That is until there’s not enough room to get undressed.” 

Fred and Lee quickly glanced at one another before immediately plastering on scandalized expressions, hands pressed tight to their hearts; “Mr. Weasley!” “Why I never!” Talking over each other they admonished George for his dirty mind, swearing up and down he was corrupting their innocence as if they hadn’t been thinking the same thing. Finally they relented, instead switching over to pester him about who exactly it was he had in mind, and though he waved them off, claiming it was all hypothetical, he couldn’t help but think of Sarah. Before Fred had brought her to his attention he couldn’t honestly say he’d noticed her before, but now that she was on his radar he had a hard time looking the other way. During meals he had taken to observing her; he liked the way she tossed her head back when she laughed particularly hard, wondering if she would toss it in a similar fashion for less wholesome reasons. 

In the end the three boys decided the collapsed tunnel behind a mirror on the fourth floor would be the best space to "entertain" in, and George couldn’t help but fall asleep, cradled by the haze of alcohol, with the thought of inviting Sarah there on his mind, and whether she would say yes. 

**Author's Note:**

> I will be cross-posting this fic on tumblr @acciobraincell.  
> Updates should go up at the same time but please feel free to come interact with me over there; I will be posting headcanons and other fic related things, in additions to blurbs and one-offs. 
> 
> Cheers! xx


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